Nestlé to expand RP operations
MANILA – Nestlé Philippines Inc. (NPI) is committed to invest P4.3 billion to expand its operations in the country, said NPI chairman and chief executive John Miller, the Philippine News Agency reported.
Miller said in a news conference that Nestlé is staying for good in the country as it is confident in the business climate under the Aquino Administration, amid reports that the firm is planning to move to Indonesia.
Miller said NPI is even setting up a new factory on a 27-hectare site in Tanauan, Batangas. The construction of the new factory will start this month and is expected to be completed in March 2012.
The facility will produce Coffee Mate Non-Dairy Creamer and Bear Brand Powdered Milk Drink.
Miller said the new factory would address the need to increase production as demand for the two brands, both of which are market category leaders, continued to grow.
Nestlé has projected that the domestic demand for Bear Brand and Coffee Mate would grow by 19 percent and 18 percent, respectively this year.
The Tanauan factory, which is expected to help spur economic growth in the area, will directly employ an initial of 170 workers and generate hundreds of other jobs in sectors providing the facility with raw materials and services.
“Nestlé has been present in the Philippines as a part of everyday life for 99 years,” Miller said.
He also said the investment in the Tanauan factory starts a new chapter in Nestlé’s commitment to the country, as it looks forward to the next 100 years of nurturing Filipino families by offering healthy and tasty products.
“We believe this investment is a clear demonstration of our full confidence in the Philippines. It is timely as the country restates its commitment to accelerate economic growth. As always, our strategy is guided by our belief in Creating Shared Value for all stakeholders,” Miller said.
Nestlé is also continuing to invest in its four existing factories, particularly in technology and equipment upgrades to enhance capacities, in order to meet growing demand for its products.
In 2009, Nestlé produced almost half a million metric tons of products in various categories that included coffee, milk, beverages, non-dairy creamer, food, infant nutrition, ice cream, chilled dairy, and breakfast cereals.
The company’s investments in the country reached about P10 billion during the last five years.
Nestlé has poured 80 percent of its investments into its existing factories to generate higher efficiencies, create additional capacities, and safeguard the environment.
The balance of 20 percent has been spent on sales infrastructure, distribution, and information systems.
Nestlé’s four manufacturing facilities in the country are located in Cagayan de Oro, which manufactures Nescafe and Bear Brand; in Cabuyao, Laguna, which makes Nido, Nesvita, Nan, Nestogen, Bear Brand Choco, Nestle All Purpose Cream, Ready-to-Drink Milo, Bear Brand Sterilized, and Chuckie; in Lipa City in Batangas, which produces Milo and Nestle Breakfast Cereals; and in Pulilan, Bulacan, which was recently commissioned to manufacture Nestle Ice Cream and Chilled products.
The company’s Cabuyao, Cagayan de Oro and Lipa factories also serve as the Nestlé Group’s Export Centers for infant nutrition, filled milk powder and breakfast cereals, respectively.
The factories manufacture these various products for Nestlé markets abroad.
In the Nestlé Group, the designation of Export Center recognizes a factory’s world-class quality standards and efficiency levels.
“The designation of Export Center for the three factories is testimony to the world-class manufacturing capability and competence of Filipinos,” Miller said.
“Our factories prove that the Philippines can compete with other countries in terms of quality, cost and reliability,” Miller said, noting that in 2007, the Nestlé Group selected the Philippines as the site for its shared service center for financial and employee services requirements of Nestlé companies in the Philippines, Malaysia/Singapore, Indonesia, Indochina, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and the Middle East.
The shared service center is now known as Nestlé Business Services (NBS), located in Meycauayan, Bulacan. The NBS today has 500 employees.
The company, which registered sales of nearly P 86 billion in 2009, paid some P 10.6 billion in taxes to the government in the same year, an increase of 20 percent over the previous year. It is the second largest taxpayer in the country.
NPI, which is one of the key players in the fast moving consumer goods (FMCG) industry, is among the country’s top six corporations.
